Apparatus for aerating liquids



'9, 1940- H. H. HoYl-:R 'ET AL, 2,196,632 l APPARATUSl FOR AERATING LIQUIDS Filed Oct. 20, 1958 3 Sheetsf-Sheet 1 Fig. 1. 15 14' MTW Ap 9, 1940. H. H. HoYER Erm.

APPARATUS FOR AERATING LIQUIDS Filld Vct. 20, 195B V 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 J 2;/ In ventol Mii r mmap April 9, 1940. H, H, HQYE'R E1- AL 2,196,632

APPARATUS FOB AERATING LIQUIDS Filld Oct. 20, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Attorneys .',LPftentdAPr- 921940 .i 1'72196632' v-l-w1NITED y STAT-ss PATENT OFFICE n 2,196,632 d 1j. n APPARATUS FORAERATING LIQUIDS Henry Hamilton Hoyer and Peggy Wilson, Haniworthy, near Poole, England, assignors; toy Dorset Industries (Poole) Limited, Hamworthy, f near Poole, England, av British"`jointstock company i l f Applioation october zo, 193s, serial No. 236,126

. In Great Britain September''245i1.937`

This invention comprises improvements in and Figure 4 is- 'a plan ythe top of vthe apparatus `connected with apparatus for aerating 'liquids vseen in Figure 1, v M

and it has for its principal object to provide iml Figure 5 is a sectional elevation, but to a larger f proved means for theproduction and dispensing scale, of. the agitator device seen in Figure 1;., y

L vl5 in a simple'and reliable manner of cool aerated Figuret` is an 'elevation oi'such agitator device. `5

soft drinks' such as are sold nowadays in stores; f Figure "F1 is. a plan of the plug part of said agi" shops, hotels, schools, restaurants and the like. tator device, and l f l L According v.to this inventio'rLan apparatus for Figure 8'is an invertedplan of the cup-like manufacturing aerated liquids comprises a vessel part of this agitator device.

lrffor'liquid to be aerated,v a chamber adapted to As shown'fn Figure i,jthe 'apparatus comprises v10 z contain `a charge of solid carbon dioxide and a vessel a for receiving liqui-d to be aerated and a means'fonleading tooliquid in such vessel gas chamber" b beneathfor I,receiving solid carbon emitted from the charge in the carbon dioxide. dioxide, ythe ytwo being ydisposed and insulated Chamb'e v within a'casingc; The vessel a is suitably made r16 In,c'zairyingthe invention into effeotja casing in the form of a stainless steel cylinder or linerl 15? may be employed embodying a closed Vessel for closed.` at the zbottoni and `it is preferably `inreceiving liquid to lbe aerated and va chambersertedremovably into a xed metal casing d, so for Vreceivir'ig solid carbon dioxide, means being thatv it maybe'taken out formcleaning. For'this provided for leading gaseous carbon dioxide from purposaand as shown by Figure 2, the liner a 20. the said chamber to the lower part of the vessel may suitably have internal projections e ior en- 2'0-` for aerating 'the liquid therein and further means gagement by a balffshaped withdrawing tool such y i being provided for dispensing the aerated liquid as f. AAs the linerafis of stainless steel, which is in syphon` fashion`irom said vessel as' required; able to, withstand the pressures occurring, the Apparatus of `this nature may be .quite self-'1 `liner casing d may bec-f aluminium and made 26- contained :and in .shops and the like may be separately from the carbon dioxide chamber 'b 25.;l

placed on `a counter to serve as a soda fountain so that the latter may bea shallow bunker made A jyor;fcar'bonator.v `'l'.here need be nopmechanical of mild steel and thus-advantageously capable-,oi

. arts to operate beyond a draw-off tap or taps, withstanding-pressure. Theliner casing d suitfor producing g kdrinks, for customers, and the ably. has a skirt g at the lower' end for attachment `30, :carbon dioxide fori the aeration can be used in f vas by rvettng @Welding '90th-8 'bunker b Whh 30 l thewadvantageous dry ice form now so largely is of cylindrical form exceptat the front where 'manufactured for` cooling and refrigerating purit is at for application ofthe door h tothe d f poses..` f i carbon dioxide charging opening 1c. The bote..l

Itwillbe 'realised that by utilising the carbon tomsA of the liner-"d and linery casing d andthe 36 dioxide gas obtained' from the solid product, a top of-the carbon dioxide bunker bare suitably "35' very simple method is provided for applying cardisposed in contact with Yone another to facili# Lbon Vdioxide for" aerating liquids. The gas is ttateconduction of vcold from'b to a. :For certain also able to effect desirable cooling of the liquids DllIpOSeS. thell'lela may bl? dispensed With and and'm rising through the body of liquid is able' then the Dart d may Serve aSihQjVeSSel for liquid 0 to' cause considerable agitation resulting in highly eii'ective aeration.` l y y In order Vto enablethe invention to be readily understood reference is directed to the accompanying drawings in which:

steel. lOr alternativelyuse may be made of a steel cylinder closed at the bottom and having a horioxide chamber in the lower part and a vessel for with parts vin, elevation, of one example of appart might be provided with a glass liner. for' params in accordance .with "hse HPTOVQQGP'GS- the' liquid. The doorof the carbon dioxide chamligure 2 `1s a perspectlve vlew lllustrating a ber maybe tightly closed by bm engagingjmgs 50' construction'of vessel for liquid, and of a bailf such as m lon the Chamber on either Side of the 50 liketo'ol, for facilitatingl removall of the vvessel door and iii-,ted with (mev 01- kmore lsofews Such. l from its. outer casing. j as n. The door'has suitable packing at o so as to Figure 3 is apart sectional elevation of the topforin' al substantiallyhermetic closure for the coverbi the apparatus, and ttings thereof, as bunkerb.k The outer casing'c may be' of metal p5@ regarded vfrom 'the right-hand side of Figure l.' but is more conveniently 'madeof wood, e.- g., 55

to be aeratedbeing suitably vmarie of stainless 40 1.*

zontalpartition.providing a1 shallow carbon did i liqui-din' the upper part. This'oylinder couldk be 45 l lligure 1 1s a slightly irregular vertical section, of Stai less .Ste-e1. or. if of il ik Steel, t] e per d d,

plywood, so as to avoid or reduce condensation of moisture on the `sides of the apparatus. In order also to prevent deterioration of the heat insulatingproperties of the insulationp of the casing, by condensation occurring on the exterior of the Vcasing d or the like, the insulation may be enclosed in a rubber impregnated and hermetically sealed envelope or envelopes. The casing c is'v provided with an insulated door r for the bunker opening s and a packing t may be d'mrposed around the edge of this door.` At the'bottom, the apparatus` may have an enlarged or ornamental base u and the sides of the casing c may be tted with handles for lifting purposes.

From Figures l, Sand e it willA 'bejseen'that the vessel a is closed by a top cover o. This is removably secured by screwsand nuts at w and when in position is pressed tightly by them against a packing :c at the mouth flange y of the liner 0.. Thetop cover is suitably 'a casting e. g.'of silver plated gun-n1etal, with .a peripheral ange e fitting over the top edge of the vouter casing lc and a central lling aperture i closed by a hingedv cover 2Y adapted to rest on a gasket 3 and to be held tightly'down by a screw and nut fastening at At diametricaflly opposite, or otherwise conveniently disposed, points the top casting c has two thickened parts one, marked 5, being bored Withpassages 6 for inlet of carbon dioxidegas led by a pipe l freni the carbon dioxidecharnber or bunker b, and the other, marked 8, being bored with passages 9 for outlet o .aerated liquid. The pipe l' may ascend Iwithin the casing c to near the top and there emerge at the rear forconnection by a union ID with a non-return valve tting il mounted by an elbow i2 on the top casting. A second non-return valve may be provided'at i3 in ,the passages @l in the top cover. `These nonreturn valvesy effectively .prevent back-flush of liquid from the liner a to the carbon dioxide chamber b when the Acarbon dioxide in the latter is spent. The gas given off from the solid bon dioxide is'capable of creating'a relatively. high pressure inside the vessel a, say QOlbs. per

4square inch, but as a much lowerpressure is generally suiiicient, safety valve means is provided to blow off -at the desired working pressure. The pressure is 'suitably indicated by a gauge l?- mounted on'the part `5 of the Atop cover in communication with the carbon "dioxide inlet passages 5, and there maybe-a safety valvel l5open to these passages and a second safety valve i6 applied to a-separate passa-ge it oommunicating with the spaceabove the liquid in the liner at.. The second valve it `would be set at the desired working pressure, which may Vary with dierent' liquids, and the rstvalve is an additional safety provision and set to release at a suitable` higher pressure. `The passages to each safety valve are l preferably fitted with `a release valve or tap l? for releasing the pressure,

as When cleaning the apparatus.

The carbon dioxide is supplied tothe liquid in the Vessel a through an agitator device which may take the form of aI horizontal pipe ring with perforations for escape of the gas. However, in order to facilitate cleaning' it is. preferred to employ an agitator device jor the construction shown in Figures l and 5 to 8. This devcewhich may be of silver-plated brass, comprises an invertedcup-like part It 'attached to kthe end of the descending carbon dioxide'pipe i9 and provided in its lower peripherallfedge withl a series (say 24) of small radial slots 26. Into Vthis'cuplike part i3 a plug 2l is screwed which has a iiange 22 to engage the lower :peripheral edge of the part it and a hollow 23 at the inner end roinwhich a number (say 4) of radialslots 2li lead to corresponding vertical slots. 25 formed in the screwed part of the plug. screwed part of the plug may be of less depth than the corresponding portion of the cup part it to facilitate access of carbon dioxide to the slots 25 which terminate at their lower lends in a groove 2B in the plug vwhich is open to the rai namely a relatively. short pipe 21 depending in the vessel a to Asucha distance as would correspond to the level of the-.upper surface of say a gallon of liquid inthe vessel (or more according to size), and a second pipe 28 shown dotted, depending. almost to the bottoml of the .vessel VThe `pipes depend from the passaged part 8 of the top cover v and the shorter one leads to a main draw-o tapS While the other leads to a secondary or reserve `draw-oli" tap 39. l Thus, when liquid ceases to discharge from the main As shown thev draw-0E tap 29, it will be realised bythe operator that the apparatus needs re-.charging with liquid and yet a further supply of liquid can be contained, if necessary, from the reservefdraafoir tap 3&3. The arrangement alsoY enables the apparatus to be re-charged while there is still a certain amount of liquid in the cyllnderor liner c, with the advantage'that this liquidv serves to cool the freshly charged'liquid `without waiting. The agitator and draw-off pipes IS, El VandZ are suitably inclined towards the iniddlezof` the vessel a asshown and being attachedto the top cover o are removable with the latter When cleaning is to be done.

The various passages in, the top cover open into the periphery and upper and lower sides thereof and are suitably of straightformation soas to facilitate cleaning. lWheretloe passagesvv are required to be bent, for example the carbondioxide and liquid draw-off 4passages G, 9, they are comprised by separate parts `of straight, formation disposed at an angle one to another so that cleaning is still readily possible.. The drawol taps 29, 30 are suitably Aof the variety having a hole 3| in their casingsdiarnetrlcally opposite to the inlet passaget and this allows.l insertion of a brush, for cleaning the adjoining passages 9 of the top cover o, by simply removing the valve plugs. The latteralso hayeright- V'and the door h tightly closed. Carbon-dioxide gas, emitted from the solid product .in-bunker E rises in the pipe 'l and is led to the agitator y through the passages 6 and pipe lll. The is ldistributed by theragitator at the several points 20 to aerate andcool the liquid.. vIt also sets up a pressure'above the level lof the liquid so that on operation of thedraw-offtap iSd-liquid is delivered in `syphon'fashion through thel pipe 2'1, adjoining passages Sand the tap- The cover may be fitted with a gauge for indicating` the level of the liquid inV the vessel a, but generally this is unnecessary. With the arrangement or draw-off pipes 21, 28 described. When liquid is drawn ofi the carbon-dioxide gas vigorously agitates and aerates the liquid so that the latter is delivered in a uniformly aerated` and cooled condition.V As will be realised, all that is necessary to obtain aerated liquid from the chargedapparatus is to operate the draw-oil? tap and there are no complicated mechanical parts requiring attention and operation for this purpose. ,v

It will be understood that the apparatus shown is readily disassembled for cleaning and all parts may -be easily cleansed, therebyv advantageously complying with requirements of health authori Moreover, there is no likelihood of back` iiushing of liquid to the bunker b and the operai' tion is capable of adjustment yto suit whichever ties.

liquid is being served.'V

Under tests this apparatus hasI proved to be capable of eiiicient aeration and dispensing of a large range of liquids andof delivering them all in a favourably cool condition. During these tests, it has been found that, with an apparatus f of 21/2 gallonscapacity, an unlimitedquantity of liquid can be worked for a` period of 10-12 hours with an expenditure of onlyA 3 lbs. of solid carbon dioxide of which the cost isl comparatively small (or slightly more carbon'dioxide in the case 'of Flavouring may also be eiected by cordials and essences and an excellentaerated Water is ob` tainable byplacing ordinary water in the Vessel a.. A convenient Working pressure for the aer-v.` ation of beer is about 5 lbs., for'milk about 10.

lbs. and for aerated Waters about 20lbs. but the pressures may be readily varied if desired.4

When the apparatus is closed it is entirely airtight and this, together with-the use `of carbon dioxide, acts effectively for `preserving liquids,A

for example, milk will' keep for several days in the apparatus and the tendency for fruit drinks to become sour is effectively prevented.

We claim:

1. Apparatus for the production anddispensing of aerated liquids, comprising in combination a heat-insulating casing, a vessel for liquid and a chamber for solid carbon dioxide both; arranged in said casing with the insulationarrangedclosee Aly aboutV them, said chamber'being external oi l .said vessel but beingadjo-ined therewith ythrough parallell surfaces in heat-conductive relation `'with one another, a removable cover at the top 'of saidr casing', a carbon-dioxide-supply vpipe depending munication with said chamber, Iand a AliquiddraW-off pipe depending from saidv cover into said vessel and lhavingcommunicationvvith `the exterior of said casing.

2. Apparatus forthe production and vdispensing of aerated liquids, comprising in combination a heat-insulating casing, a -vessel` for liquid and achamberffor solid' carbon dioxide both located.

in said casing with the insulation -arranged`closely about them, saidv chamber being external of said vessel but adjoined therewith through Walls in surface contact with one another, a 'removable cover at the top of said casinga carbon-dioxide- "from said `cover into said vessel-and having Acomsupply pipe dependingfromsaid coverl into said vessel and having communication With said chamber, anda liquid-'draW-off pipe depending from saidvcover into .said vessel and having corn-A `munication with the exterior of said casing.y j

3. Apparatus according torciairn 1, comprising a plurality of liquid-dravv-oA pipes of diierent lengths depending from the cover and having communication independently with the exterior of said casing. 1

' 4. Apparatusaccor'ding' to claim l., inrwhich the s cover lhas horizontalA passages communicating passages having straight formation for facilitating cleaningtliereof. l

-5. `Apparatus according to claim 1, in which the cover has a horizontal passage' communicating with the liquid-draW-'o pipe and the appa-` ratus further. comprises a draw-oir tap'mountedl on the cover at the outer end of said passage,

`said taphaving a hole in its casing opposite to the said passage to facilitate cleaning of the passage and thetap.'

y `6. Apparatus according to claim 1 in which the cover has a passage communicating With the with the pipes depending rfrom saidtc'oventhese carbon-dioxide-supply pipe and ,with the cham- :ber forsolid kcarbon dioxide, and the apparatus further comprises two'safety valves mounted oni f said cover; one of said valves havingcommunication with the upper part of thel space in the yvessel for liquid, and the other of said valves having connection with said passage and being constructed to open at a higher pressure than the first-specified valve.

H.- `rmrnrfron BOYER'. PEGGY WILSON 

